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| God's promise |
And to think before the flood of Noah's day, it didn't rain, but the ground was watered from moisture that came up from beneath.
Scripture says, "In the 600th year of Noah's life, on the 17th day of the second month-on that day all the springs of the great deep burst forth, and the flood gates of the heavens were opened. And rain fell on the earth 40 days and 40 nights." Gen. 7:11-12
When the waters receded and all the living creatures were released from the ark, God made a covenant with Noah and said, Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth. And God set a rainbow in the clouds as a sign and a reminder saying, Whenever a rainbow appears it would remind Him of His covenant with Noah. [See Gen. 9:8-17] NIV
The flood of Noah's day is again spoken of in the 54th chapter of Isaiah. Here God is speaking of the New Covenant that is to come after Christ's death and resurrection. Here God says, "To me, this is like the days of Noah, when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth. So now I have sworn not to be angry with you, never to rebuke you again. Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed," says the Lord, who has compassion on you. [Isa. 54:9-10] NIV
In these verses, God is saying of the born-again believer, who is under the New Covenant, that He has sworn not to be angry with you and never to rebuke you. These verses are preceded by chapter 53 of Isaiah, which of course speaks of Jesus on the cross. The work of the cross is where our Redeemer became the sacrifice for our sins. [See 1 John 2:2]
When God made the covenant with Noah, it was an unconditional covenant. It was not contingent on whether or not the people of the earth did good or bad, but it relied on God's promise. So it is for us who are born-again believers under the New Covenant of grace. The wrath that God held against mankind's sin was exhausted as it fell squarely on Jesus at the cross.
Romans 5:9 Since we have now been justified by His blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through Him! NIV
1 Thes. 5:8-9 But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, in the hope of salvation as a helmet. For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.
